Relay



0. S. FIELD Aug. 7, 1934.

RELAY Filed April 5, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet FIG. 2.

INVENTOR BY Q 5. 52%

MM. ATTORNEY 0. S. FIELD Aug. 7, 1934.

RELAY Filed April 5, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fllNgliNgZR BY 4 I ZMM W ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 7, 1934 RELAY? Oscar-SSFieId, Rochester, N. Y5; assigllo'r ween:

erai Railway Signal--- 1 Company, Rochsterw Appiimtion. AprilfB, 71930, Serial No. 1,442,022.:

Thiseinventionirelatessinigenerahto relays, land: has-more :parti'culan :referenceto-ia time aelementv relay of general use and particularly adapted for railway user 1'; Int-many instances itiis desirablefto have are! a lay which; does: not: immediatelyi'respond pto an operation-hut whichmesponds: and picks. up; for: r example, sonly after a apredeterminedinterval of time has elapsed :fromsald; operationn V In: other zcasesnitaisr-idesirable to, have a;re1ay:; which picks up immediatelyijzon' ant operation;= (aslsthe throwingpof aacontrolswitch) and then automatically? releases: only :1 after-raupredeter mined :lapseof time from the pick+un;. Such-ree lays find-fuse in: .-many situations "such; t for example;;as..in:.the melll knownzAn P. 13; system of signaling, incautomaticztraincontrol-gisystemsnoiiz various-types',:: and the like.

With the above and ether objects in .mindn, it iswproposed in accordance with 'theipresent ine vention toeprovideemechanicak meanssfor con-:- trolling a :re1a';y;so;-.as .toainsureithezdesired ;1a;pse of time between control; hperatiomand :relay :op eration,t.whereby to providega melamwhieh is;s10w;r (to .pickzup; or. slow to releasaswithout modifying: thelelectrical chara-cteristicsxofi the-relay.;in;ques:-.. tion; as. for: exampleczis LVBIY? generally done a1 makingrsa slows-release ,relayg.by-t providingccthe winding :of: thejrelay :witha a .ShOllleClICllitEdaCOP-B- pererband ionrthe liken.

More specifically, it is proposed.inzaccordancee withlithe. present; ,iriventionz. toieiprovi-deuagirelay having can: energizing ;-:circuit lincludingiztwo none tactsi-in; series:.-. Oneiof the, contactsxisisbiasedstoc a positiom-to gopeniathe:scircuitawhile thezother contact, is normally inz-open circuitipositi'onsandg. is provided- Withfla molding:windinguwherebyr 'ifil once placed in circuit closing position; itmvill res: mainpin .such :position: soglongsiaszthaeholding winding is energized: The'ztwo contactsxare ear.- rangedgto'zbe operate'dahy;.the:plunger ofizca solee noid, in sequence," in oneidirectiomzwith'a timing element .such. as :a clockrworkszconnectedmo be: wound -.up by :the 'moyementt'of; the. solenoid plum-H gem. On release .of i'theesolenoid ;plungerr=when its .windingeautomaticallylbecomes :de'-:energized the rate of return movement of the plunger is determined by the timingelement-, anddt'is only afterthis plunger has returned, 'undercontrol of the timing element; to it's original positionythatf the desired operation of the relay takes place."

Further objects," purposes'and characteristic features of'the 'present invention will appearas the 'descriptiompro'gresses, reference being made' tothee accompanying gdrawingssshowing; solely by. -Waya-iof: example: and inznoi mannerswhatsms eveni-xima L limitingr sense-,atwo iforms the: invention can; assume; In;::'therdrawingsi:-,-.

:1 is za;.=,schematic;iview, iwhollylzdivorced t from-actual structure-,1: of .r. one ;:f orm 10123 the VGIItiOILE.

Figr2 ;.is :a schematiclvieweof 4a modifiedrformi of the invention.

Fig-:3 :is asectional-ielevation of ioneicommere cial formiiof .the. invention. t.

Figxfl sis; assectionalafsplan wiew; takenzonalinefl 4+4 Ofzfig; 3 .viewedrlimithe direction: 20f ithea arrows;:

Inrdescribingihe invention it iszthoughtsclean-r .1 est, atmrfirst-zdescribe .=.it.' inconnectionawith the schematic views-.of. Figs; a .1 landeZ; and.-J-th'en :to briefiyvdescrihe the: same in: a connection: with the commercial form which the invention; can: assume; as shown: in "Figs. '3 and-.;4.'l

Referringmow to Fig: 1,: there is here shown a relay R which; it :is clesiredito so control astermakemit slowctoopick Jlpi For contiiolling' this: relay R"; therewisremployed a solenoidi'ioperated plunger havingsa esettin'g winding SW}; which 1, when; energized iraisesw. plunger i P3 Plunger? hasoconnectedrtouts-lower; end amanm l which is' fixed- :to a shaft 2 lofr astiming .eIement 'IE Whioh canibesofiany. usual. 'or ,desired fdrm;:as:-a clock workgtsuchhas :showni foroexample in the C1 S5- L; Bushnelll Patent; seriaNo'; 1,725,:2729Jgranted Alla gust 20, 1929. The armil has oneend in the form of fa-ipointer 13 rrwhich-icane'pass overagraduated scale on 'theicasing iofithetiming element IEl if desired: The (other: end of A arm-7:1 is arranged 1:0 bear against iaatoe 54 =iof\ a 1contact 5? piv'oted atn- 6 and; biasedazby gravity tovmouerin a :clockivise direction; abut!Testrainedcagairist; such movement and-:ihe ldriri: its supperzzpositio'np as shown," by tlie arm..l;when plungerwP isiniits lower positibm as ig shown; An'secondcontact 27; of ithe make 'beiore bieak type; .is: xarrangedretocbes moved-lfi'o'm -its lowen position, assshowm: toe an upper :position; when plunger-r1 3 is 5 raised; after-r a r predeterminedamount of-:lost:tmotion. has been= taken =up --bea tween the contact '7 and an adjustable nutfiS having-:azlockiznutszQ wJthereio r, adjustable on a threadeduportiom .11 0:; onaplungerr. P5. A holding stiekewinding l-IG. is;:prouidedefdrscontact f7 and."= operates .tOwhQldzCOIltfiGli f7 in its uppenpositio'nn whenienergizedz:

Thenoperation ofisthe partsgshownrinz Figzl liesas follows. In the positions. offpartsrsaszshown in Fig. 1,- with switch ,Smpen; ,theawindingi'SW n is de-energized, stick winding HC de-energized, relay R is de-energized, plunger P is in its lower position and the timing element TE is unwound or run down. The switch S can be a hand operated switch or it can be automatically controlled by means of train movement or in any other desired manner.

On closure of switch S, the setting winding SW of the solenoid is energized through a circuit including battery B, switch S, wires 11 and 12,

winding SW, wire 13, contact finger 7 and back.

point and wire 15.

On energization of winding SW, plunger P is raised to thereby rotate arm 1 in a counterclockwise direction to release toe 4 of contact 5 and allow it to open under the force of gravity. Rotation of arm 1 also winds up the timing element TE, and, as soon as the nut 8 on plunger P contacts with contact finger 7, this contact is moved to its upper position in which position it is held by the stick winding HO which is energized through the stick circuit including battery B, switch S, wires 11 and 38, winding HC, wire 14, finger 7 and front pointof HC, and wire 15. Before closure of switch S, the energizing circuit .forrelay R. which includes contact finger 5 and front point, and contact finger '7 and front point was open at contact finger 7 to thereby maintain relay R de-energized.

After plunger P has moved to its upper position, as described just above, contact finger 7 is positioned in its upper position to close the energizing circuit for relay R at this point, but prior to this closing of the circuit, the circuit was opened by the dropping of contact finger 5. As, a result relay R, which was de-energized when switch S was'firstclosed, remains de-energized after plunger P has been moved to its upper position.

= Movement of plunger P to its upper position breaks the energizing circuit for winding SW at contact finger 7 and back point to thereby allow the plunger to move downwardly under the force of gravity at a rate determined by the timing element TE. It is only after the plunger P has reached its lowermost position that it closes contact finger 5 and front point to thereby complete the energizing circuit for relay R which includes battery B, wire 15, contact finger '7 and frontpoint, wire 35, relay R, wire 16, contact finger 5 and front point, wires 37, 38 and 11, and switchpS in closed position. When'switch S is opened, the holding coil HC is de-energized. to allow contact finger '7 to drop to its lower position to thereby restore all parts to their normal shown positions. It will be readily appreciated from .the above description, that the time elapsed between closure of switch S and the picking up of relay R, is determined bythe extent to which the timing element TE has been wound up during the upward movement of the plunger P. Furthermore the amount of ,upward movement of plunger P can be readily adjusted by the adjustment of the nut 8 on plunger P to thereby adjust the wind up of TE and hence the timing of the pick-up of relay R.

Referring now to Fig. 2, there is here shown a slightly modified form wherein the controlled re- ,lay R is connected up to a back point of contact finger 5 instead of to a front point as in Fig. 1. This results in relay R being slow to release instead'of'slow to pick up, as described above in connectionwith Fig. 1.

i In the form. shown in. Fig. 2, on closing switch S, contact finger 5 drops and contact finger 7 is moved to its upper position thereby immediately completeing the energizing circuit for relay R so that this relay picks up practically simultaneously with the closure of switch S.

Relay R however releases only after a lapse of time which is determined by the time required for plunger P to move from its upper position to its lower position, as it is only after the plunger P has reached its lower position that the energizing circuit for relay R is broken at contact form, of the invention schematically shown in Figs.1and 2. The device in a commercial form, includes a casing 17 and a cover 18 of insulated material,

with a solenoid element 19 of the shell type positioned in the casing and held in place by a flange 20 resting on a collar 21 of the cover 18.

Carried by the core of the solenoid is the setting winding SW, and the holding coil HG, together with the plunger P.

The plunger P has the arm 1 connected to its lower end as by a cotter pin 1 with the arm 1 carried on the shaft2 of the timing element TE, and with the other end of the arm 1 in the form of a pointer 3. The timing element TE is shown as mounted on supporting pins 22 having springs 23 sleeved thereon for resiliently supporting the element.

On the plunger P is an operating nut 8 which i can be adjusted on the threaded portion 10 of the plunger and then clamped in adjusted position by the lock nut 9, the plunger P passing through an enlarged opening 7 of the armature 7 whereby to permit 10st motion travel of the plunger withrespect to armature '7 until the operating nut 8 comes into contact with an arm 24 on the armature, after which further movement of the plunger P moves the armature 7 to its upper position to be there held by the holding coil H0.

The gravity biased contact 5 is shown aspivoted at 6 to a support bracket 6 supported by the core member 19 at 25. The contact finger 7 is shown as operatingbetween front and back fixed contacts 26 and 27, the contact 27 being carried by the bracket 6 and insulated there- 7 from by an insulator 36.

In the commercial form shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the contact finger 5 is equipped withboth a front and a back fixed contact 28 and 29 respectively, whereby to permit the relay R. to be connected either as shown in Fig. 1, for slow pick-up, or as shown in Fig. 2, for slow release; or two relays can be connected at the same time, one to be slow to pick-up and the other slow to release.

For facilitating an understanding of the structure of Figs..3 and 4, the connection thereto of the relay R and of the battery 13, and the initiating switch S, has been shown in dotted lines. As appears from the drawings, it is merely necessary to connect the battery, as B, across the binding posts 30. and .31. together with the control switch S, and to connect relay R across GUI binding... posts: 321. and 3.3, if 2' it. is; to: be; a;,s o.w., pick-up relay; IfsR is tobeaslow releaser lan it is connected; betweenibinding: post 32 anda.

post" (IlOttShOWl'l inthe drawingb connected, to

- theriback fixed contact. 29:.

It :is clear from the above description that, the, presentiinvention .has. provided means for male; ing: any usual, normally. fast .;acting relay either slow-torelease orsslow. to pickup, andzadiustable as. to timing within the limits of: the structure employed; and: all:without; modifying the relay in any; manner; but: simply by connecting it; up,

properly. tothe timing mechanism of this invention;

The above. rather specific description. of: twoforms of: the presentinvention are. given solely,

by way of example, and are not intended, in any manner whatsoever, in a. limiting. sense. Ob.- viously, the invention can assume many. different physical forms, and: is susceptible of numerous modifications, and all such forms and modifications-iarerintended to be included in this application, as come within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my claim:

1. In combination, a circuit including an electrically operated time controlled contact, and an electrically operated contact, a solenoid for sequentially operating said contacts upon energization of the solenoid, means for automatically de-energizing said solenoid, and means for pre venting the sequential return of said contacts on de-energization of said solenoid whereby to produce a predetermined time controlled operation of said circuit.

2. In combination, a normally open energizing circuit for a relay, having an electrically operated, time controlled, contact, and an electrically invention, I now joperated contact, a solenoid for sequentially operating said contacts without closing said circuit, upon energization of the solenoid, means for automatically de-energizing said solenoid, and means for preventing the sequential return ..'of said contacts on de-energization of said solenoid whereby to close said circuit a predetermined time after energization of said solenoid.

3. In a slow acting device, in combination, a

timing element, a solenoid, a solenoid operated Iplunger for winding up the element upon energization, means for adjusting the stroke of the plunger, an energizing circuit including a normally closed contact and a normally open contact each of which is operated to its opposite position immediately on energization of the solenoid, means for retaining the normally open contact in its closed position, and means for tie-energizing the solenoid to cause a predetermined timed operation of the other contact to closed position to thus close the circuit.

4. In combination, a clock-Work timing element, a solenoid, a solenoid operated plunger for winding up the element upon energization, manual means for adjusting the stroke of the plunger, an energizing circuit including a normally closed contact and a normally open contact each of which is operated to its opposite position immediately on energization of the solenoid, a holding coil for retaining the normally open contact in its closed position regardless of the position of the plunger, means for automatically de-energizing the solenoid upon completion of its power stroke to cause a predetermined timed operation of the other contact to a closed position to thus close the circuit.

ture carrying. .acontact zand m-ovable to. operated ppsition bythesplunger, andxaholding winding on said core,.. energizeda through. the. armature.

contact; fornholding the. .armatureeim operated position whenenergized.

6;. In a.,time.-.element relay, in combination, a

casing, a-- solenoid including a.core,= a winding" andagplunger andcarried by-thecasing, a biased.

contacteoperablehb-y. the plunger,- an armature, a,-.contactx-governed. by..the armature,v an adjustable, lost. motion. ,operative connection between the; plunger 4 and J the armature, the armature being movable; tooperated position by; the

plunger, andanholding winding on saidcore,

ands including.- the armature governed 1 contact,-

for. holding; thearmature in operated-position when. energized;

7; In a time elementrelay, in combination, a

casing, a solenoid including a core, a winding and a plunger and carried by the casing, a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature, an adjustable, lost motion operative connection between the plunger and the armature, the armature being movable to operated position by the plunger, and a holding winding on said core for holding the armature in operated position when energized, a timing element connected to be wound up when the plunger moves in one direction, and determine the rate of movement or" the plunger in the opposite direction.

8. In a time element relay, in combination, a casing, a solenoid including a core, a winding and a plunger and carried by the casing, a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature,

. an adjustable, lost motion operative connection between the plunger and the armature with the armature movable to operated position by the plunger, a holding winding on said core for holding the armature in operated position when energized, and a circuit including the biased contact and a contact controlled by said armature, in series.

9. In a time element relay, in combination, a casing, a solenoid including a core, a winding and a plunger and carried by the casing, a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature, an adjustable, lost motion operation connection between the plunger and the armature with the armature movable to operated position by the plunger, a holding winding on said core for holding the armature in operated position when energized, a timing element connected to be wound up when the plunger moves in one direction, and determine the rate of movement of the plunger in the opposite direction, and a circuit including the biased contact and a contact controlled by said armature, in series.

10. In a time element relay, in combination, a solenoid including a winding and a plunger, a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature carrying a contact and controlled to operated position by the plunger, and a holding winding for holding the armature in operated position when energized through the armature contact.

11. In a time element relay, in combination, a solenoid including a winding and a plunger, a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature, a contact controlled by the armature, an adjustable lost motion operative connection between the plunger and the armature, the arma- "ture being movable to operated positionby the lplunger, and .a holding winding for holding the armature in operated position when energized :through the armature controlled contact.

12. In a time element relay, incombination, a solenoid including a winding and a plunger, :a biased contact operable by the plunger, an armature, an adjustable, lost motion operative connection between the plunger and the armature, the armature being movable to operated position by the plunger, a holding Windingfor holding the armature in operated position when enrgized, a clock-work timing element connected to be wound up when the plunger moves in one direction, and determine the rate of movement of the plunger in the opposite direction.

13. In a time element, in combination, an op erating member, electrical means for actuating the operating member, a contact operated by the operating member, an armature carrying a contact and movable to operated position by the operating member, and electricrmeians. de-J pending upon the'armature carried contact for holding the armature in operatediposition.

14.- In atime element, in combination, an operating member, electrical means for actuate ing-the operating member, a contact operated bythe operating member, an armature. con-,

' -trolled to operated position by the plunger and a holding winding for holding the armature in operated position when energized through the :asmature controlled contact.

OSCAR S. FIELD. 

